


465. One ticket for a new kind of normal

by SevlinRipley



Series: This is No-Terror Ground [2]
Category: It - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Pre-Slash, pseudo-date
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-02-02
Packaged: 2019-03-12 13:38:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13548465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SevlinRipley/pseuds/SevlinRipley
Summary: The first time they see each other after Richie left Eddie to his nap.• Tuesday; June 08, 1993





	465. One ticket for a new kind of normal

**Author's Note:**

> This part _sort of_ stands alone, if you're desperate. But if the premise of the first part isn't your thing, reading further is not recommended. Background/suggested relationships include: Ben/Beverly and Mike/Stan. ~~Bill is most certainly welcome to sit in with Mike/Stan if he likes, and even Ben/Beverly (despite what Bev says.) I imagine he sort of drifts between the two relationships. Not that Mike/Stan are official anyway.~~

Richie jokes about Ben and Beverly being exhibitionists because they often invite the rest of the Losers on their dates. He hopes they know that means he's grateful. Even if the reason they do it is partly because Bev's aunt is really strict about boys, and if she says she was just hanging out with friends, plural, then the suspicion lessens. He'd made the mistake once, of calling Beverly's aunt a prude b----, because he thought it was stupid not to trust someone like Bev.

"Hey," Beverly had snapped, "Shut up. She moved from Portland to _this_ shithole so that I didn't have to leave you guys." Richie never dared speak a less-than-kind word about her again.

Tonight they were all meeting at the movie house, for an action flick. Bev's choice, clearly, because Ben definitely would've gone for cheesy romance if it'd been his turn to pick.

As always, the Losers gathered together outside the ticket booth, and went in together to pick their not-assigned assigned seats. Ben, Beverly, Bill - in alphabetical order by chance - then Mike, Stan, Eddie, and Richie.

Loathe as he was to admit it, Richie had shown up later than usual, because he'd found himself having flashes of nerves. He'd be on his bike, coasting along just fine. Then his mind would supply a reel of Eddie refusing to look him in the face, or switching seats with someone so he didn't have to be within reach of Richie or his voice. His bike would turn, making a 'u' shape in the street as Richie contemplated whether he should show up at all. Debating whether it would be _good_ to give themselves some space. So that something didn't hitch weird the next time they interacted.

But, he realized, not showing up in the first place _would_ be something hitching weird. Since Richie had never missed a movie, not once in his whole life.

So, palms sweating, he chained his bike to the lamp post at the corner of the street, and then made his way toward the gleaming lights of the marquee. Eddie had part of his lower lip tucked between his teeth, but he looked Richie dead on and nodded his head as a greeting. Richie's heart jumped, but quelled as he turned his focus to Mike gently hitting him in the arm for making them wait. "Sorry, sorry... There aren't any clocks in Stan's mother's room. Would you believe that?" Stan rolled his eyes.

"You know those jokes stopped being funny like ten years ago, right?"

"Your mom thinks they're funny."

"Shut it, Ric-"

Beverly cleared her throat, and jerked her head to the boy with a dull glaze over his eyes looking out from behind the pane of glass. Waiting for their order. Everyone quieted as they asked for their ticket and handed their money over. Except Richie, who first asked for a ticket to 'Ben and Bev's porno'. Rough crowd. Apparently even this guy had heard it one too many times. Bev cuffed him on the back of the head, and then gave the real title, tone apologetic. On the way through the revolving doors, Richie whispered to Bev, "You know. You're gorgeous, but sleeping with you honestly _would_ be like sleeping with my mother."

"Well I guess it's good that I'm with Ben and not you, huh?" she said, smiling before elbowing him.

"Haystack on the other hand..." Richie mused, eyes bright.

"Oh no. Our relationship is closed to the public, sorry kid," Bev said, putting a possessive arm around Ben's waist as he coughed from beside her.

Then they were filing into their seats, and Richie felt almost completely normal, nothing changed, when he was once again stuck at the end by Eddie. Still, he found himself looking at Eddie even more than usual, throughout. Jokes caught in his throat.

At some point Eddie moved his arm onto the armrest, where Richie's was already taking up space, and as they touched, Eddie looked at him, as Richie did the same. "Hey," Richie whispered.

Eddie's brows twitched together just slightly, a laugh playing at his lips in the dark. "Hi."

Richie bit at the center of his bottom lip, and then tried not to flinch as Eddie lifted his other hand up toward his face. To push Richie's glasses up his nose _for_ him. "Thanks," Richie breathed. Letting go of whatever he'd thought might happen just then.

"I thought you weren't gonna show," Eddie said, bowing his head closer.

"I know," Richie said, throat tight. He looked seriously at Eddie for a long moment, and then said, "Sorry. I didn't -"

"Me either. But."

"Eds..."

Then Stan... good ol' Stan the Man... Just had to interrupt. "Will you two idiots lay off, for once, during the movie. I'm actually enjoying this one since I've been able to hear a single word of it for the last half hour."

Mike chuckled from Stan's other side, and patted his hand where it lay between them on their set of arm rests. "Stan," he chided, still grinning wide.

"You'd know better if you'd ever let me switch seats with you."

"Hell no. Watch the movie."

Richie rolled his eyes, for show, for Eddie, and then went back to watching the screen. Yeah sure, whatever. Movies were supposedly better when you could witness a coherent plot line. He'd still have rather shit-talked the poor aims of every gunman, or talked about how shattered their bones would be from the jumps they were making between buildings, etc. Eddie totally would've agreed with him.

Once the movie had let out, Ben and Bev getting their snuggling in for the night, most everyone went on their way, walking in the various directions of their homes, or hopping on their own bikes. Mike's family had a delivery truck now, but his grandfather, stubborn as ever, never let it get used for anything other than business. Poor guy never got an easy route home, but then he was also the strongest in their group, so maybe his grandfather had a point.

Eddie, however, unlocked his bike, and walked Richie to the corner where his own was cast in lamplight. "We probably have been kind of annoying..." Eddie said, regarding Stan's objection to their conversation. Even though it was more hushed than usual, and altogether possibly more important than anything else they'd ever discussed at the movies.

"He should have enough brain power to navigate between our voices, and the movie by now. We've given him ample time to study."

Snickering, Eddie shook his head. "Yeah... Well, maybe we should save some of it for private re-watches or something."

Richie swallowed at that suggestion, trying not to turn it into what it sort of sounded like. An invitation for on-going movie dates. "Maybe." Once he got his bike chain wrapped around the spindles enough, he looked up at Eddie, and forced a voice that was more steady than he expected to manage. "Eds, can I come over tomorrow?"

 _Not normal to ask_ , a voice in his head chimed. Maybe it was awkward, or maybe Eddie just planned to make extra certain his window was locked the next time. Either way, Richie didn't want to interrupt if Eddie didn't want him to. Moreover, he didn't want Eddie to stop just because Richie had been an ass who couldn't take a hint.

"You don't have to ask," Eddie said, like he was speaking around a marble, quiet and almost shy, even as an 'idiot' hung at the end.

Just then, he wanted to hug Eddie, wanted to pull him close and make sure he wouldn't regret that decision as soon as he walked away. Reiterate that however Eddie spent his time, Richie would support him. As long as he was safe. But his muscles wouldn't move, joints wouldn't bend in that direction, so he took in a deep breath and nodded instead. "Cool, well... See you!"

"Bye Rich," Eddie said, a small smile tugging at his lips, eyes blinking, amused that Richie would leave sounding so - normal.

**Author's Note:**

> The rest of this series is really for my own gratification, so I completely understand if people aren't taken with it. My writing tends only to go downhill from part/chapter 1. Also... I don't have a funny bone in my body, so if Richie feels flat, that's why :/


End file.
